Dark Storm
by Shadefall
Summary: FireClan,OceanClan,DuskClan,SwiftClan...they are falling apart. An average FireClan she-cat, Shadefall, must find one single cat that will change everything...for her, and the Clans...  First Story!
1. FireClan

ALLEGIANCES

FIRECLAN

CLAN LEADER Gleamstar-Dark gray she-cat with stormy blue eyes

DEPUTY Cloudfall-cream-and-white tom

MEDICINE CAT Nightspots-very dark gray tom with black flecks

WARRIORS (toms or she-cats without kits)

Flightfoot—Lean white tom with a tabby-striped tail

Mosstail—tortoisheshell she-cat with green eyes

Pinewing—slender dark brown she-cat

Robintail—red she-cat with green eyes

Tigerfoot—light brown tabby tom

Apprentice, Icepaw

Owlfeather—black-and-white tom with amber eyes

Sunnose—golden tom with amber eyes

Frostfur—silver she-cat with white muzzle, paws, and chest

Apprentice, Volepaw

Trustheart—sandy gray tom with golden eyes

Apprentice, Acornpaw

Foxflash—young ginger she-cat with markings like a fox; green eyes

Jaywhisker—light gray tabby tom with dark blue eyes

Fernleaf—black she-cat with green eyes

Shadefall—russet-colored tabby she-cat with a cream under belly; amber eyes

Leopardblaze—striking calico tom with blue eyes

APPRENTICES

Icepaw—blue she-cat with white patches

Volepaw—dark brown tabby tom

Acornpaw—light brown tom with a brown tail

QUEENS

Petalpelt—beautiful black she-cat with white patches that look like petals; expecting Sunnose's kits

ELDERS

Toadheart—ginger-and-white tom

Brightspeckle—pretty pale gray she-cat with a white splotch on her back.

Scarpelt—dark brown tabby tom with a stumpy tail; yellow eyes

DUSKCLAN

CLANLEADER Stalkstar—very dark brown tom

DEPUTY Stormfoot—ashy gray tom

MEDICINE CAT Mistypool—blue she-cat with a white dash on her head

WARRIORS Mouseclaw—dark cream she-cat

Breezeleap—black tom, amber eyes

Apprentice, Snowpaw(white she-cat)

Goosefur—light gray speckled tom

Leafmoon—pretty tortoiseshell she-cat

Otterpelt—brown tabby tom

Apprentice, Lichenpaw(dark brown tom)

Ashflight—slender silver tabby

QUEENS Dewtail—white she-cat mother of Sedgekit, and

Stonekit

Flowersplash—gray-and white she-cat

ELDERS Darknose—black tom

Threefoot—gray-and-white tom with black underbelly, missing one paw

SWIFTCLAN

CLAN LEADER Whiskerstar—lean white she-cat

DEPUTY Silverear—white tom with silver ears, paws, and tail

MEDICINE CAT Lilyheart—cream she-cat

WARRIORS Featherclaw—dark gray tabby tom

Grassstripe—long-haired blue tom

Flareheart—ginger she-cat with yellow eyes

Ripplefur—black-and-gray tom with light blue eyes

Apprentice, Weaselpaw(light brown tabby tom)

Spottedstream—dark tortoiseshell she-cat

Viperfang—dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Meadowleaf—black-and-white she-cat

Apprentice, Hollypaw(red she-cat)

NURSERY Furzeshine—light brown tabby she-cat, expecting Grassstripe's kits

Icewing—pure white she-cat with blue eyes, mother of Loonkit, and Sparrowkit

ELDERS Windfoot—golden brown tabby tom

Oaktootth—dark brown tom with dark yellow eyes

OCEANCLAN

CLAN LEADER Minnowstar—big tabby tom

DEPUTY Swansplash—beautiful slender pale gray she-cat with darker tail and paws

MEDICINE CAT Lightningfeather—golden brown tabby tom

Apprentice, Specklemist(pale gray she-cat)

WARRIORS Pebblebounce—small golden dappled she-cat

Hawkfall—brown-and-white tom

Wavestripe—sleek pale gray tom with dark stripes

Apprentice, Mosspaw(brown-and-white she-cat)

Whitetail—white she-cat

Gingerberry—pale ginger she-cat

Brindleflight—black-and-brown tom

Nightnose—black-and-white tom

Apprentice, Streampaw(silver tabby tom)

Runningwing—dark gray she-cat

NURSERY Dovesong—blue she-cat,mother of Creekkit, Mothkit, Lichenkit

ELDERS Bearclaw—dark brown tom with a white chest

Willowleaf—tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat

CATS OUTSIDE THE CLANS

Bruno—gray-brown tom; kittypet

Blondie—very light cream she-cat; kittypet

Patch—handsome pure black tom with fierce green eyes

PROLOGUE

The wind blew hard. An orange tom slowly watched the blazing sun sink over the darkening hills, like a rock in a river. The cold breeze ruffled his fur as he padded among the rocks; the tom looked at the sky once more to make sure night was close by. The moon was beginning to rise and the cat started running the forest. He kept on dodging the trees, until he halted to draping undergrowth. All the vines furled around the stones, and leaves and branches hung over the opening, and the large tom carefully stepped in.

When he padded out of the little tunnel, four cats were waiting for him, their tails twitching with anticipation.

"You're late." One of the cats hissed, showing his crooked teeth.

"I had to wait for just the right time." the orange tom panted.

He looked up to the trees, they were whistling in the wind as if they were telling the cats something.

"We don't have much time.", A she-cat rushed, "They're calling to us."

She beckoned with her tail for the four cats to follow.

"Echodawn,we'll never get there in time, the Hill of Spirits is too far away." A tom complained.

Echodawn shut her eyes, "Hush, Thrushstripe, we are not going to the Hill of Spirits, each of us, are going to the Clans."

Murmurs rippled through the cats, the orange tom took a stand.

"Why do we need to go?"he mewed.

"Because, my love, they need our help,"Echodawn pressed her nose to his head, "A storm is coming, one that could wipe out _all_ the clans. It will be a journey for everyone, including us." She whispered.

She backed away and sat down; she muttered something that no one could hear.

"Thrushstripe, you will visit SwiftClan."

The dark brown tabby lashed his tail with determination, "I'll do my best." he purred.

"Rabbitleap, you will go to OceanClan." Echodawn continued.

The young she-cat lifted her head with admiration.

"Jaggedfang, you will go to DuskClan, and Flarestorm," she looked at him with energy and hope, "You will go to FireClan."

The young ginger tom curled his tail in delight.

"I won't let you down."Flarestorm purred.

"I know you won't." Echodawn choked with pride.

Suddenly, a flash split the horizon, and a screech cracked the air.

"They're coming!" Rabbitleap growled, her gray fur bristling.

"You all must go," Echodawn pressed, and then she nodded, "You know what to do.

The expression in their eyes showed that they understood, and the cats plunged into the forest.

Echodawn glanced at Flarestorm as he raced into darkness.

"Good luck, my son." she whispered.

CHAPTER 1

Dawn was on its brim to becoming morning a snowflake fell on Shadefall's nose. The young ginger she-cat widened her amber eyes in surprise.

"It's getting colder every single day!" she grumbled, shuffling in her sleep, "At least I'm not a part of dawn patrol this morning."

Shadefall tried to go back to feeling drowsy and feel comforted by her Clanmates' warmth in the warrior den. She became a warrior only 4 moons ago and it still felt like she was an apprentice.

_It doesn't make a difference anyways; I'm still treated like one._ She thought bitterly.

She got up and stretched her legs, curling her tail, feeling refreshed to walk in the open of FireClan. Her Clan. Shadefall's ears pricked as the dawn patrol came back. Her Clanmates wreathed all around them as they came back with fresh-kill.

Then she looked at the pile with horror.

_It's running so low….._Shadefall thought with worry.

Foxflash walked over to her, one of her Clanmates, her best friend. Every time Shadefall looked at her she almost mistaken her as a fox; the she-cat looked just like one.

Foxflash padded up to her and sighed. "We have to work harder. Our patrol caught that prey out of luck, we need more cats to go on patrols." Although Foxflash was young, she was a well respected warrior.

Her expression brightened, "But, I _do_ have a sparrow. You and I can share it. Since it's so close to leaf-bare, we'll need everything we can get."

They both sat under the willow tree, enjoying their company.

"Petalpelt's so close to having kits." Shadefall pointed out.

The swollen black queen walked over to the fresh-kill pile, nosing her way through prey, which was so little.

"I know. Any day now. You thinking of mentoring one?" Foxflash asked, with mouthful of sparrow in her jaws.

"Me? No way! But they are sure to give you one. You're a valuable warrior." Shadefall admitted.

The she-cat always had a twinge of jealousy whenever Foxflash brought this up. Foxflash was better than her at everything, and sometimes she did it just to rub it in her face.

_But Foxflash is a good friend, and loyal._ She reminded herself.

The fox-like she-cat stood up with a stern look in her eyes.

"You're just as valuable as me!", she protested, "And you know it."

Shadefall muttered something under her breath and stumbled away to go stretch out in the sun, abandoning Foxflash.

_I'm useless. I have to do something noble, and _then_ they'll respect me._

Shadefall stomped to the large rocks where many cats were lying down, the sun dappling their fur. She crawled up the crevices and lay down on her back, letting the sun soak her cream-colored belly.

"Enjoying the sun?" a rasping voice mewed from behind.

Shadefall looked behind her. It was Toadheart, one of FireClan's elders. He lumbered over to her and plopped on the stone.

"You might as well enjoy it now, leafbare's not far off." The old cat's voice cracked.

Looking at how skinny she was, he handed his vole to her.

"Here, have it. I'm not hungry." Toadheart insisted.

"Um, not thanks. I've already eaten."

Toadheart looked at her with stern eyes, "Shadefall is something bothering you?"

She looked away, _Of course_ he_ notices!_

"It's no big deal." Shadefall ensured.

Toadheart sighed. "Is this about Foxflash again?"

She sat up, licked her paw, and mewed stubbornly.

"No….okay, fine. It's just, all she does is talk about mentoring and all that. She wants to be clan leader one day…no cat would doubt her," she lashed her tail. "She makes me feel useless."

Toadheart rolled his eyes.

"She-cats!" he muttered.

Then, all of a sudden, Toadheart's scarred ears pricked up and his green eyes softened.

"Fine. If you don't want to spend time with an old lump, then go share the prey with Trustheart, he hasn't eaten all day.

He glared at her with amusement on his face, and she looked over her shoulder and saw the handsome, sandy tom sitting in the warriors' den. Trustheart quickly looked at her, and then shyly looked away.

Her tail stiffened, but then she got back in focus with Toadheart.

She quickly scooped up the vole with her jaws.

"I'll give it to Petalpelt. I want her to have healthy, strong kits, let alone her."

She jumped off the rocky surface and trotted to the nursery.


	2. Haunting Times

Shadefall itched her way through the tough brambles and wriggled into the little warm den. She stared at the swollen queen sleeping steadily, up and down, up and down. The scents made her drowsy, making her think she was a kit again.

"Ow!" came a shriek from behind her. The she cat whipped around and saw Trustheart making his way into the nursery.

"Are you okay?" she asked with a twinge of amusement in her voice.

"Fine. Just got pricked by a bramble." He said as he got up and sat next to her.

She admired his strong body, and, and his beautiful eyes….

"The kits are so close to being born! I'm so happy for Petalpelt." He purred.

Petalpelt was her sister, and he was always sensitive about nursing because of what happened to his mother, she died giving birth to another litter.

"I'm sure they'll make fine warriors." She whispered.

He turned towards her quickly and looked into her eyes. Only in that little split second, she could see something, something was _there_. Like he was reading her mind.

Suddenly, an eerie chill rushed down her spine and her tail struck out like lightning. Her eyes widened and they shut immediately…when she opened them again, Petalpelt or Trustheart weren't there. Instead of Trustheart sat Tigerfoot, staring bleakly into the nursery, where everyone was surrounding.

"Tigerfoot?" Tigerfoot, what's going on?"

No answer.

The medicine cat, Nightspots came rushing towards the den, his eyes dazed.

"It's Daisyshine! She's giving birth!" A cat squeaked with excitement and fear.

Nightspots pushed his way through the cats and focused on the brown she-cat. Dasiyshine? Who was Daisyshine? Then she noticed…it was Trustheart's mother. The poor queen was heaving, and her eyes were widened as large as two moons, her jaws were gaped as if yowling. She couldn't breathe.

"Help..help me!" she rasped.

"I will do the best I can." Nightspots soothed, and he brushed his black tail calmly against her back.

"Somebody get me some moss! Quickly!" the medicine cat ordered.

A cream-and-white tom, Cloudfall, the deputy of FireClan, shouldered his way through the crowd with two apprentices by his side.

Shadefall's eyes bulged. It was Foxflash and Trustheart! Or, Foxpaw and, Trustpaw.

Cloudfall looked down at the two young cats. "These two will go. But you have to hurry."

"Anything for my mother." Trustheart vowed, his fur fluffed up and his flank raggled.

She quickly set her eyes back on the poor she-cat screeching with pain, blood around her bedding. She wasn't pulling through.

"Is Daisyshine going to be okay?" a little kit in the nursery studied the queen.

Her mother, a dark brown she-cat pulled the little ginger kit away with her tail.

"There, there. She's just having a tough time delivering. Everything will be alright." The queen assured, but there was still fear in her tone.

Then Shadefall noticed, that the kit, was her. Was this all a dream? Did she ever remember Daisyshine's death. There were so many questions to be asked…


	3. Foxflash's Asylum

Foxflash made her way through the juniper bushes that led in and out of the camp. She grumbled as her tail fur weaved into a twig. With a blast of irritation, she jolted in out and dashed to the Spirit Tree in the area where all the cats had the gathering, once a moon.

_Why does Shadefall always have to think that our loyalty is some sort of contest? _She thought irritably.

I'm _the one who always volunteers to go out on hunting patrols, and _I _never complain whenever I get a thorn in my pad! She's just…weak._

Immediatley, she bashed the thought out of her head, feeling bad about how she acted so hotly towards Shadefall earlier.

_I guess we just have different strengths_. The she-cat thought fairly, then she sighed.

"But the clan is falling apart." She whispered to herself, a pain of worry twisted in her stomach.

Foxflash carefully climbed up the Spirit Tree, to connect with Star Clan, the Spirits of the Hills. The fox-like she-cat curled up in a big base cross section of a branch, and looked up.

All of the branches above her weaved around each other, looking like brambles. It was an old tree, with crusty bark and it had paw prints on the sides from many cats before.

She took in a deep breath, and placed her paw on the tree. She closed her eyes, and whispered softly, "I've never been here alone before. I need your answers. _We _need your answers. Leaf-bare is almost near and our Clan is already out of prey. I feel there is a great plague coming upon our clan, and we need your help, please."

She lifted her paw up from the tree and quietly climbed down. Suddenly, a hard wind blew and Foxflash lost her balance, and stumbled down the tree.

_OOF!_

"Oh, I guess you heard me!" she growled, but was now a bit relieved that the spirits had listened.

She prodded of the dirt clung to her chest and started walking back.

"What are you doing here without an escort?" a voice snarled behind her.

Foxflash rolled her eyes and spun around. It was Otterpelt from DuskClan!

Noticing that he was alone, she growled back, "I could ask you the same question." She stepped closer in on him, so they were face to face.

Foxflash noticed the tom's eyes flicker, as if there was something he was hiding. She'd seen Otterpelt at Gatherings before, and they were about the same age, but they never really got a chance to talk.

Trying to hide his wariness, he slumped his head below his shoulders and stalked around Foxflash.

"You're Foxflash right? From FireClan?" he sneered, but there was a hint of humor in his voice.

"Yes, and I have every right to be here Otterpelt! So don't demand to know why I'm here, you are here alone also." She said defensively, but was also a little embarrassed for him getting a little too close to her.

"Alright, alright. I will pretend to understand. Now, if you let me take care of my business I'd gladly let you take care of yours." Otterpelt mewed, still a sense of amusement in his tone.

_Does he think of this as a joke! _Foxflash was outraged by Otterpelt's annoying humor.

"Well, I wish your clan well." She growled.

She stomped all the way back into the forest, "Stupid tom, having no respect!" Foxflash muttered.

Then she stopped herself short. What if she took everything so seriously?

_Wanting to become deputy or Clan leader is different. That's ambition, and Shadefall has her own problems that she can work out herself._

But then she wondered…_Am I working too hard?_

Suddenly, the bushes rustled all around her. Her tailed curled and her spine tingled.

"Wh-who is it!" she screeched.

All of the bushes rustled around her, and the branches rumbled.

"What do you want!"

A moan came and the whole forest went black. It was quiet for a few moments and at first she thought it was a dream.

Then a beam of light came pouring from the sky, shining down on a dying kit, laying right in front of her. It twitched and mewed pathetically, blood pouring out of it's side.

"Oh, my StarClan…this kit needs help! Help! Somebody help!" she yowled at the top of her lungs.

She focused on the dying kit and looked around to see if anything could help her.

Her silver fur was matted down from blood and it turned her pelt a gross red-brown.

Foxflash heard pawsteps rushing near.

"Help!" she cried again.

Three heads popped out of the bushes. It was Sunnose, Jaywhisker, and Mosstail.

"What, what is it Foxflash!" Sunnose panted, his golden eyes dazed.

Foxflash stumbled to her paws, "It's the kit, look! She's dying! Ge-get Nightspots, you have to help her!

"Foxflash, what are you talking about? Where's the kit!" Jaywhisker yelped.

Her pelt ruffled, she was baffled.

"You don't see it! It's right there!"

Mosstail exchanged a worried glance at Sunnose, "Foxflash, dear, there's no kit."

"We need to take you back to camp." Jaywhisker whispered.

Sunnose and Mosstail escorted her on each side of her flanks and Jaywhisker padded behind her.

Mosstail was whispering something to Jaywhisker but she couldn't hear. Her head was still pounding about the dying kit.

Foxflash turned her head to where the kit was lying as they ventured nearer toward the camp. Her pelt was ruffled, her eyes wild.

"No!No! Don't just leave her there! She's dying you have to do something! No..no…"

It felt like there was a bramble stuck in her heart. She looked over one last time, and the kit was gone.

**yay! this is my favorite Chapter! And yeah, the chapter title is a bit "out there" but hint: FOXFLASH IS NOT CRAZY! review please:)**


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